The Oxen

Ririro.com - Poetry · Jun 30, 2025 · 1m · transcript

"The Oxen" is a short poem by Thomas Hardy set on Christmas Eve, where an elder recalls the old folk belief that oxen kneel in their stalls at midnight to honour the birth of Christ. Hardy contrasts the unquestioning faith of childhood — when gathered around a warm hearth, no one thought to doubt — with the quieter, more uncertain longing of adult belief. The poem's emotional power rests in its final lines, where the speaker admits he would still venture out into the dark, simply hoping the old magic might hold true.

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